The Sturmgeschutz Ausf.E was the final version of the StuG III assault gun to carry the short 7.5cm gun and to be designed as a close support vehicle for the infantry. The Ausf.E was fairly similar to the Ausf.C and Ausf.D. The main change was the installation of an armoured pannier on the right-hand side of the superstructure and an increase in the size of the pannier on the left. The extra space was used to carry the radio sets needed when the StuG III was used as a command vehicle. The extra space also allowed another eight rounds of ammunition to be carried.
A total of 500 Ausf.Es were ordered, but only 272 were completed before production switched to the Ausf.F with its long gun. One Ausf.E was used as the prototype for the StuH (a StuG carrying a howitzer) and another for the prototype of the StulG33B (an attempt to carry a 15cm gun on a StuG).
The StuG III Ausf.E was used to replace combat losses suffered on the Eastern Front. After production of the short-gunned StuG ended in March 1942 the number in service began to fall, until July 1943, only 37 were still in combat